Morey’s dogged pursuit of Howard near end

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While Dwight Howard headed to the mountain air to consider where to take his talents, Daryl Morey grabbed a day to breathe before heading to Orlando, Fla., for summer league.

For nearly two years, the Rockets general manager had chased Howard one way or another. He had come tantalizingly close and fallen far short. He had tried to engineer trades, reworked his roster and cleared salary-cap room, all to bring in the player he pegged to be the next in a line of Rockets star big men stretching from Elvin Hayes through Moses Malone, Ralph Sampson, Hakeem Olajuwon and Yao Ming.
Morey could get an answer as soon as Friday, with Howard, 27, expected to emerge in the coming days with his decision. After Howard heard the pitches of five teams trying to land the NBA’s top center and most coveted free agent, Morey’s long, “Les Miserables”-worthy chase had made the Rockets a strange combination of front-runner and underdog.

The Rockets have strengths at least some of their competitors cannot match, starting with a young, ascending roster including another top talent just reaching his prime in guard James Harden.

Yet, the legacy of the Lakers and lure of Los Angeles, to say nothing of the persuasive powers of Kobe Bryant and celebrity make the leap to the Rockets or other teams seeking to lure Howard out of town seem enormous, even after his unsatisfying season in L.A.

A strong contender might have emerged Thursday. ESPN reported Golden State is trying to clear cap room to sign Howard.

Howard’s decision will have a widespread impact beyond the five teams given an audience with him in Los Angeles. But no team has pursued Howard longer or with more single-minded purpose than the Rockets.

Morey’s maneuvers

The Rockets came closest at the 2012 trade deadline when Howard waffled between opting in for another season with the Orlando Magic and becoming a free agent at that season’s end, all while Morey negotiated a trade. Even that day, as Howard headed to the news conference to say he would remain with the Magic, Morey was on the phone negotiating a deal focusing on Kevin Martin in case Howard reversed course again and headed toward free agency.

Howard had sent signals he had little interest in the Rockets’ rebuilding. But even with only six weeks left of the season, Morey was willing to risk that even that short period of time would be enough to keep him. He never got the chance.

By the summer, talks resumed. Morey moved to strengthen his position with the Magic by dealing Kyle Lowry to Toronto for a lottery pick. Morey did strengthen his position to make a deal, but he did not come as close with new Magic GM Rob Hennigan as he had with his predecessor, Otis Smith. The Magic preferred a deal that would bring them Arron Afflalo to a trade featuring Martin.

With Howard joining the Lakers, he seemed certain to remain out of the Rockets’ reach. But the deal with Toronto paid off, enabling the Rockets to land Harden. And with Morey structuring every other new contract to allow him cap flexibility this summer, he remained in the chase.

While the Lakers struggled, Morey moved Marcus Morris for a second-round pick and traded Patrick Patterson for Thomas Robinson in the belief he could more easily deal Robinson, moves primarily made to have the cap space to offer Howard a max contract.

Howard wants crown

None of that might mean anything to Howard, who during the season said he would look for a place to be happy and after the season said he was primarily searching for a team that will be positioned to win a championship in the short and long term.

The Rockets sought to sell that they could provide both, as other teams no doubt did, too. But their long, unrelenting pursuit could be viewed as a contrast to Bryant’s tough-love recruiting pitch. The Rockets see Howard as the key to assembling a championship team; Bryant according to a Yahoo Sports report told Howard he could teach him how to be a champ. It’s unclear what Howard thinks about that.

That and a great deal more could become evident in the coming days. If nothing else, if there was an inclination to hold their breath while waiting for a puff of white smoke, or Tweet, out of Aspen, the Rockets should know better.

After two years, they should be accustomed to reminding themselves to breathe normally.